For sale again! Formally the Sapphire Mountain Golf Course, now Sapphire National Golf Course. Sapphire National Golf Course is one of the only public golf courses in the Western North Carolina mountains, specifically the Cashiers, Highlands exclusive resort community.

Sapphire Mountain Golf Club is under contract to be sold to Craig Shatto and his business partner, Roy A. Gaddey Jr., hopefully improving not only the course and its facilities, but also the struggling relationship between the course and the Sapphire Valley Masters Association (SVMA).

Current owner Danny Mays said he submitted the paperwork to the SVMA on Thursday June 7, giving the SVMA 10 days to accept or deny the sale, or perhaps even make a counter offer.

"The 10-day period has expired," said Mays, pointing to June 17 as the expiration date. "They did not respond, so it's under contract and going through the study period."

Mays said the earliest the deal could possibly close would be 90 days from June 7, which would be Sept. 7.

Shatto and his real estate broker for the deal, Bill Kruckenberger of Buyers' Real Estate of Highlands, said they could not legally disclose the purchase price of the property just yet.

Currently, there are two lawsuits pending between Mays and the SVMA, one by each. Within the last week, both Mays and his attorney, Billy Clarke, have claimed that they have filed a third lawsuit against the SVMA. However, the Chronicle has yet to obtain proof of that lawsuit.

"My main goal going into this was to improve the place, which we did," said Mays. "We wanted to leave it better than we found it, which we did. When the buyers solicited me, we wanted somebody to carry on the improvements and they have the ability to greatly improve the property.

"I would hope that the (SVMA) would work better with them than with me," Mays added.

Shatto and Kruckenberger equally reserve hope that new ownership might dismiss some of those issues.

"We're hoping to alleviate that for everybody," said Kruckenberger.

"We're trying to work with both parties," added Shatto. "Our objective here is to be sensitive to the golfers and to the members who are not golfers. There's between 11,000 to 13,000 members. We certainly do not want to cause any uproar. We're not going to make it a private course or anything like that. We want to improve the course and we're looking for feedback from the members to make this course better."

SVMA president Walt Green said the association was under a confidentiality agreement not to comment on the sale itself, but said, "These individuals seem to be cognizant of the community and want to do what's best for the property and its owners."

As for whether Green thinks new ownership could help drop the pending lawsuits, he said, "That has to be worked out. I've not seen any of the materials regarding the sale, but we'd certainly hope the sale could clear up some of those issues."

Mays said, "There's nothing in the sales contracts that will settle our litigation. We have sent written settlement requests to them, (the SVMA) but we got no response."

Shatto said he plans to put a lot of money into the course to make it, "more fun and playable." Among other changes Shatto and Gaddey Jr. are considering are improvements and renovations to the clubhouse, the pro shop, retail items, the pub, and restaurant.

But Shatto reiterated that he wants to do this with input from the SVMA.

"We're trying to say, 'OK guys, stop your fighting.' We're here to try to help one party drop their lawsuit and another party to drop their lawsuit," added Shatto. "Hopefully, we're successful in doing that."

Another of Shatto's goals is to improve property values for members.

"What's happening over there is values are dropping because of the lawsuits and talk of the golf course shutting down," said Shatto about the 148-acre property. "Property values are going to go up and we're deeply committed to that."

The SVMA owns deeded rights that require the golf course to be a golf course, according to Kruckenberger, easing any worries members may have about drastic changes to the course.

"These guys (the potential new owners) love golf, love the golf course, love the resort and Cashiers Valley," said Kruckenberger.

Shatto, 42, has been coming to the Sapphire area since 1991 and lives here part-time. He works in public relations and marketing, with a focus on golf and real estate. Gaddey Jr., is from Michigan and currently lives in Tampa, Fla. He builds and renovates golf courses.

At the next SVMA board meeting on July 9 at 10 a.m., Shatto and Gaddy Jr., plan to make a presentation and are looking for participation and support.

"We just want to give them an idea of what we're thinking," said Shatto. "We are looking for support and participation. We hope to have a good turnout."

Rustic Modern Cabin

Did You Know?

THE SMALLEST POST OFFICE AND HIGHEST WATERFALL Near Cashiers, within a few miles of each other, are the following landmarks: the smallest Post Office in the United States (1903-53), the highest waterfall east of the Mississippi River (Whitewater Falls, 411 feet) and the highest sheer rock mountain face east of the Mississippi (Whiteside Mountain, 4,930 feet).

Closest Airports to Cashiers, Highlands, Lake Glenville, NC

Cashiers, the way life should be

This handcarved sign found at the local antique shop in Cashiers, NC says it all!

Did you know?

Blue Ridge Mountains Eastern ranges of the Appalachian Mountain System, extending from southeastern Pennsylvania to Northern Georgia. In North Carolina, the Blue Ridge forms the Eastern section of a mountain chain over 75 miles wide. Other parts of this chain include the Black Mountains and the Great Smoky Mountains. The name comes from the blue tone of the forested slopes when seen at a distance.

Did you know?
Cashiers was settled in 1835 by John Zachary and family. The area was known as Cashiers Valley until 1881, when the name was shortened just to Cashiers. The Zachary family still lives in the area.